Constant Contact Blogs

3 Easy Ways to Drive Social Media Traffic by Using Links in Your Emails

Azure Collier — Sat, 25 May 2013 13:00:39 +0000

When you spend time on social media marketing for your business, what are you doing to grow your fans and followers?

You’re probably spending time creating great content or marketing campaigns – and that’s important. But have you overlooked the easiest way to grow your fan base – integrating your existing channels to drive people to your social profiles?

If you’re using email, it’s really easy to drive your audience to your social profiles by adding social buttons or icons to all of your messages.

Here are 3 tools that you can use to do that:

1. Social buttons in Constant Contact

When you’re creating an email in Constant Contact, you can add social media buttons to your message. When you’re in the edit mode of a block, choose the social tab from the tools on the left side of the screen, pick the buttons you want to use, and link them to your profile, then click Insert to add them to your block.

Make sure to link the buttons directly to each of your social channels. Here’s how the buttons will appear in your email:

2. Outlook signature

Did you know you can create a signature in Outlook that includes social media logos? Click on File, and then choose Options. From the Options window, select Mail, and then Signatures. Edit your signature, and use the Insert Picture option to add logos, then click on each image and use the Insert Hyperlink to link them to your social profiles.

Need to find social logos? You can save official versions from these sites:

3. WiseStamp app

WiseStamp is a customizable signature app that you can use with Constant Contact, Gmail, Yahoo, and several other web-based email services. The great thing about WiseStamp is that you link to more than 50 social profiles and services – including the more popular tools like Facebook and Twitter, as well as an RSS feed from your blog, services like SlideShare, and even the link for your Constant Contact mailing list signup form.

Once you’ve downloaded WiseStamp and connected it to your email, select the editor, click on Social Icons, then add links to your social profiles.

You can also add apps that display your latest social content. Click on the Email Apps tab, and choose the networks you want to feature.

Save your new signature, and you can check out a preview of what it will look like in your emails.

Need more social media marketing tips? Make sure to sign up for our free Hints & Tips newsletter!

The post 3 Easy Ways to Drive Social Media Traffic by Using Links in Your Emails appeared first on Constant Contact Blogs.

B2B Email Marketers Are Serious About Relevant Content … And Other Hot Topics

Ryan Pinkham — Fri, 24 May 2013 18:00:25 +0000

What are you doing to improve your email marketing in 2013?

That was the question presented to more than 400 B2B marketers in a recent study from BtoB Magazine.

For nearly half of respondents, finding a way to deliver the right content to the right audience is a top priority.

Plus, did you know that three-quarters of smartphone-driven purchases take place in-person, offline?

Whether you’re a B2B, B2C, or nonprofit organization, there’s something for you in this week’s marketing news roundup!

1. Delivering relevant content is a top concern for B2B email marketers

For business-to-business (B2B) marketers, being able to target the right message to the right audience is a top priority.

According to a recent report from BtoB Magazine, 47% of B2B respondents cite “delivering content that’s relevant to a segment” as the top tactic they can take to improve their email marketing efforts. Lead nurture programs (43%), content quality and volume (40%), and list segmentation (30%) were also top concerns for B2B email marketers.

As far as email marketing goals, customer acquisition is the top goal of B2B businesses. Other goals include: lead nurturing (29%), brand awareness (18%), customer retention (15%).

Bottom Line: Whether you’re a B2B, B2C, or nonprofit organization, delivering content that’s relevant to your target audience is an important part of any email marketing campaign. By delivering content that’s relevant to your readers, you’ll have more opportunities to engage your audience and to stay top-of-mind in the process.

When you consider that for 56% of consumers, irrelevant content is a top reason for unsubscribing from brand email lists, it’s clear that all email marketers need to be focused on delivering the right content to the right people every time they hit send.

2. Study: 77% of smartphone-driven retail purchases happen in stores

According to new research from Nielsen, more than three quarters of all smartphone-driven retail purchases are taking place offline.

While 42% of the 2,000 retail customers who participated in the survey reported that they rely exclusively on mobile when researching a purchasing decision, the vast majority say that they are much more likely to come in store rather than shop online.

Other interesting findings included:

57% of people searching on a smartphone expect retailers to be within five miles of their location
24% of people searching on smartphones consider local proximity of the business to be the most important search variable
33% of people searching on smartphones are looking specifically for retailer contact details (phone number, address, directions)

Bottom Line: While most of the talk around mobile over the last few months has been focused on the type of actions users are taking online, it’s also important to understand that what mobile users are doing offline can be just as important. The reality is that with more people researching your business on mobile—through search, social media, and even in the inbox—you have more opportunities to bring people into your place of business if you’re providing a positive mobile-experience.

Whether it’s taking control of your online listings, adopting a more mobile social media strategy, or making the change to mobile-friendly emails, there is plenty you can do right away.

3. Twitter rolls out two-factor account authentication

After a number of highly publicized hacks on the social network, Twitter has increased security this week with the introduction of two-factor account authentication.

Users who turn on the feature will be sent an access code via text message each time they attempt to log in to their account. They will be required to enter that code before logging in.

Twitter says that further improvements to security on the site are expected.

Bottom Line: In today’s hyper-connected world, protecting your information online is more important than ever before. When it comes to social media, protecting your information really starts with making smart decisions about who has access to your accounts and how freely you’re sharing your login information.

While having employees help out with your social media marketing can certainly help, you need to be mindful of who could access and share your information.

If you have any security concerns on Twitter, you may want to try two-factor authentication.

4. Report: Pinterest users outspend other social media users

According to a recent study from Monetate, the average pricetag from a sale generated on Pinterest is $80.54, compared to around $70 for both Facebook ($71.26) and Twitter ($70.17).

While Pinterest users may spend more, they are also more difficult to convert. According to Monetate, the conversion rate for the average Pinterest user is .36%, compared to 1.08% for the average user on Facebook.

Bottom Line: One of the biggest differences between Pinterest and other social networks is that users on the site tend to approach Pinterest with much more of a “shopping mentality.” According to a recent study from ComScore, 32% of online retail shoppers have made a purchase based on what they’ve seen on Pinterest.

If you’re looking to add something new to your social media marketing, Pinterest is a great place to start.

Want to improve your email marketing? Make sure to sign up for our free Hints & Tips newsletter!

The post B2B Email Marketers Are Serious About Relevant Content … And Other Hot Topics appeared first on Constant Contact Blogs.

Two Things You Must Do Before You Use Social Media to Sell Products

Dave Charest — Fri, 24 May 2013 13:00:15 +0000

It’s no secret that you started using social media for your business because you want to sell more products.

Except, as you may have found, you can’t just create a Facebook Page and start posting links to your products and expect people to buy them. This is because just pushing your products or services is a turnoff. People are on social media because they want to be, well, social.

That doesn’t mean social media marketing won’t help you sell more products but you have to lay the groundwork first.

What groundwork?

First, think of social media as a tool to create a presence. This is where people get to know you and your business. As they get to know you and your business, they’ll start to like you.

Then you build trust through sharing your knowledge. This trust is what builds loyalty and sells products.

Without doing these two things you’ll never sell as many products on social media as you’d like. Because at the end of the day we all do business with people we know, like, and trust.

So if you’ve been struggling to get social media to help you sell stuff. It may be time to stop selling and start sharing stories about your business and your customers instead. These stories help you engage with your social media followers and prove to make social media a much more powerful asset.

What do you think? Is social media most powerful when you use it to tell personal stories, not to sell your products? See what others are saying and weigh in on our Facebook Page.

The post Two Things You Must Do Before You Use Social Media to Sell Products appeared first on Constant Contact Blogs.

How to Make the Change to a Mobile-Friendly Email

Ryan Pinkham — Thu, 23 May 2013 16:30:48 +0000

We all know that change can be difficult.

It’s true in life and it’s certainly true when it comes to marketing your business or organization.

You find something that works, you invest time, energy, and resources into improving it, and then one day someone tells you stop and rethink everything that you’ve been doing.

It can be frustrating to say the least.

But we all know that change can be a good thing as well.

Most likely, you’ve made some pretty significant changes in the way you market your business already.

And while you might not be thrilled at the prospect of having to rethink your marketing strategy again, if you’re not at least considering making the switch to mobile-friendly emails you could be missing out on new opportunities to grow.

Back in 2012, we were faced with a very similar reality when we decided to rethink our CTCTSocial newsletter.

“With so many people consuming email across multiple devices these days—desktops, tablets, smartphones—it’s really important that your emails look great everywhere,” explains Dave Charest, Content Manager at Constant Contact. “It’s also important that the emails are focused and concise in both content and design.”

Wanting your email to look good everywhere is by no means a new idea.

But what has changed, is the number of places your emails are being seen by your readers. With 43 percent of emails being opened on a smartphone or tablet, making sure your email looks good no matter where it’s being read has taken on a whole new meaning.

That’s why we decided to make the change to a mobile-friendly email.

Here’s a closer look at how we did it.

1. We started with our email template

When we created the original CTCTSocial newsletter, we used a double-column template. We were offering up a lot of great content and didn’t want readers to have to scroll through multiple pages to read it.

But what we quickly found, when we viewed our own emails on a smartphone, was that using multiple columns was actually doing more harm than good. While the content may have appeared more organized on a desktop monitor, on a smartphone it was difficult to read without zooming in.

If you’ve ever had to zoom in to read something on a smartphone or tablet, you know it’s not ideal. Instead, we decided to use a single-column template.

2. Cutting down content

Once we decided to use a single-column template, we knew the way we approached our content had to change too.

The way our readers’ were accessing information was changing. Whether they were reading on a mobile device or not, we knew they wouldn’t want lengthy emails jam-packed with multiple articles and too many calls-to-action.

Today, convenience and instant access has become the trademark of a positive online experience.

For us, that meant focusing on the content that was most important and cutting out articles and calls-to-action that could detract from the goal of our email.

3. Rethinking links

As our new approach to content began to take shape, we knew that links would play a more important role in our redesigned newsletter.

Because the majority of our content was available inside the newsletter, open rates were our primary gauge of success. As we began to limit the amount of content we put into the actual email and instead linked to our blog or website to read more, we began to take a close look at the type of action people were taking away from the inbox.

We discovered we needed to make it as easy as possible to click-through from our emails. We learned a number of important lessons in the process:

For starters, buttons work much better than links on a mobile device. While traditional links are still important, using a button to read more, register now, or signup today is a much better experience for your mobile users.
Also, stacked links are extremely difficult to click with the tip of your finger. Links need room to breathe, especially on a mobile device. If you’re making it hard for someone to click your links, you could be missing out on traffic, signups, and even sales.

4. Taking control of our fonts

One of the things that surprised me the most when looking back at the original CTCTSocial layout was the sizes of fonts that were used. With so much to say and so little space to fit, using fonts that looked good on mobile was no easy task.

But once we decided a change was needed, taking control of our fonts proved to be a small step toward helping us achieve big results.

Here are a couple of things to keep in mind:

Use a minimum of size 11pt font for body text and 22pt for headlines.
Use a strong contrast of colors, like dark text on a light background.

To recap

We started with picking the right template. What may have been a big change, proved to be just what we needed to simplify our email layout.

With a new and improved template, we began to rethink our content as well. (Remember: clear, concise, and easy to consume is the type of experience that works well on mobile.)

With a more focused content strategy, we switched our focus to driving people to our blog and website, rather than packing everything into a single email. This made it easier for people to take the next step.

And finally, we took control of our fonts and made sure our emails were easy-to-read no matter what type of screen our audience was using.

What are you doing to help make the change to mobile-friendly emails? Let us know in the comments below.

The post How to Make the Change to a Mobile-Friendly Email appeared first on Constant Contact Blogs.

How to Make a Big Ask Even if You’re a Small Nonprofit

Miranda Paquet — Wed, 22 May 2013 14:06:36 +0000

Here’s something we could all stand to be reminded of from time to time: asking for help is a sign of strength, not weakness.

But even if you know that’s true, it’s still easy to feel intimidated when you’re making a BIG ask.

Boston-based nonprofit, Strong Women, Strong Girls (SWSG), is a mentoring organization that positively impacts thousands of young girls and women across the nation.

All with just 12 full-time staff members.

Their three tier mentoring program focuses on using relationships, skills, and role models to empower girls and women to succeed as leaders of their generation. With current locations spanning Boston, Pittsburgh, and South Florida, the small team relies on support from their community to keep the organization going strong.

Using SWSG as our model, let’s take a look at the steps you need to take for your ask to come across loud and clear.

1. Take the plunge

If you want to get your contacts to donate time, money or anything else, you’re going to have to gain their trust and confidence first. A great way to do that is with a professional and attention grabbing email newsletter.

If you’re new to the email marketing scene, creating an email newsletter might seem a little daunting at first.

That’s how it seemed to FAO Schwarz Fellow, Kayla Peck, when she joined the SWSG team 9 months ago. “When I first started, I didn’t have any communication experience so I was really coming from a novice perspective,” Kayla recalls. “Luckily, Constant Contact is really user friendly and it didn’t take me long to get a handle on it.”

Even if you’re interested in giving email marketing a try, you might still feel nervous about the time commitment.

“The biggest benefit of email marketing, from a staff perspective, is efficiency. I have a template made so it’s easy to pull together an email quickly,” Kayla explains. “I think the rest of my staff thinks it takes me a lot longer to create an email than it actually does!”

Ok, ready to jump in? Now you have to learn how to make your emails effective enough to inspire action.

2. Show off your strengths

The age-old writing mantra, “Show, don’t tell” can be applied to emails as well.

Because a lot of your contacts will be rifling through their emails quickly (and often on a small screen), it’s important that your emails are visually clear and easy to scan.

“We try to tell a story through pictures in our emails,” Kayla says. “Our emails are short, sweet, and structured so readers can get to the point quickly.”

Take a look at the email below. Using only three sentences of text, the email is effective in communicating a message to its recipient.

3. Be proud of your organization

The biggest mistake organizations make when asking for donations is shying away from what they’re asking for.

“Every spring we hold a large event called Jump into Spring. This is our largest event of the year, so we need as much help as we can get,” Kayla explains.

“With our emails, we give them multiple opportunities to get involved. It’s important for our contacts to understand that they are a crucial part of our community and their support, whatever they are able to give, is what keeps us going.”

4. Make your donations page specific

In addition to making your ask prominent in your emails, it’s also a great idea to get specific in expressing why donations are important to your organization.

Let’s take a look at the explanation SWSG offers on their donations page:

Your donation goes a long way: $250 supports field trip supplies for a girl for a year, $100 supports a college mentor’s training, $50 supports a personalized coaching session for a team of 3-4 SWSG mentors, and $25 provides curriculum binders to a team of SWSG mentors. Please also consider providing long-term support through a recurring monthly gift!

These details can be a great motivator for someone on the fence about making a donation.

“We make sure to align all our language with our organization in mind,” explains Kayla. “We want anyone reading our information to feel close to our mission. We especially want them to realize and understand that they have an active and participatory role in our community.”

Ready to bring it all together? Take the plunge and follow SWSG’s lead with an ask that’s strong, proud, loud, and clear.

What’s your experience with “big asks?” What’s worked, what hasn’t worked? Tell us about it below.

The post How to Make a Big Ask Even if You’re a Small Nonprofit appeared first on Constant Contact Blogs.

Three Tips to Help Your Sales Soar

Susan Solovic — Tue, 21 May 2013 13:00:29 +0000

No matter what type of business you’re in, you’re in the business of selling. And many small business owners admittedly don’t like sales. They are passionate about their product or service, but when it comes to closing deals, they fall short. Why? Often it’s the fear of rejection. But good sales people view “no” as a mere objection they will fight to overcome, not a reason to stop trying.

How do you face rejection and keep your confidence level high? For the most part, you must have a thick skin. The sales game is a game of a law of averages — the more sales presentations you make, the higher your probability is of getting a deal. But the reality is you’ll hear many more “no’s” before you get to one “yes” — particularly in the early days of your business. However, there are a few things you can do to improve your chances of getting to a “yes.”

1. Be prepared

Good preparation can enhance your ability to succeed. Before you make a sales call, take the time to do your research. Know a little history about the company and your prospect. Visit their website. Do an Internet search and look for recent press releases or other pertinent information. Pay attention to the company’s advertisements and marketing strategies. And don’t forget to check out their competition.

After many requests, I finally agreed to meet with a representative of a large, regional bank who wanted my company’s business. It was clear very early on in the presentation that the young woman had no idea what my company did or who I was. She brought information about local organizations for women-owned businesses, and unbeknownst to her, I served in national leadership positions with several of the groups. Shame on her for not doing her homework! Getting to know your prospect is a right of entry in today’s market.

2. Listen and get to know your prospect

During the sales call, ask open-ended questions to learn as much as you can about your prospect. Look for common interests so you can build rapport. Listen carefully so you can customize your presentation. When it comes to selling, no two prospects are created equally. Make sure your presentation is directed to their particular needs.

In my experience, I’ve found most sales people don’t understand their customer’s needs. They make the mistake of jumping right into a canned sales pitch. And as a result, many get pitched right out the door.

3. Don’t give up too easily

When faced with objections don’t give up and race out the door. Handle objectives in a positive, professional manner. Make sure you clearly understand what’s being said, and if you don’t, ask for clarification. Find out what you could do to resolve the objection. Then, armed with that information, you can devise an appropriate solution to close the sale.

The more calls you make, the more opportunities you’ll have for success. With that in mind, every “no” you receive takes you one step closer to a “yes.” And remember, every sales appointment is a new opportunity, so don’t carry negativity from one into another. It’s like my mother used to say, “If at first you don’t succeed, try and try again.”

What’s your best sales tip? Tell us about it below.

The post Three Tips to Help Your Sales Soar appeared first on Constant Contact Blogs.

Google I/O 2013: Our Thoughts [Speakeasy #41 - Hangout Edition]

Dave Charest — Mon, 20 May 2013 16:00:22 +0000

What’s in this episode?

20 minutes of marketing awesomeness.

1. This week’s topic: Google I/O Developer Conference 2013

Google I/O is an annual developer-focused conference featuring in-depth technical sessions focused on building web, mobile, and enterprise applications with Google and open web technologies. We’re joined by Constant Contact’s lead mobile architect, Danny Espinoza, who attended the conference and shares his insights and key takeaways. We also discuss the new redesign of Google+, thoughts on Google Glass, and the new Hangouts app.

Watch the Hangout:

Can see this video? Click here to watch.

As always we love to hear your feedback so leave a comment and you can now subscribe to The Speakeasy Marketing Roundtable in iTunes! So be sure to do that.

Enjoy!

Want to take this podcast with you? Now you can! Subscribe to The Speakeasy Marketing Roundtable in iTunes.

About the Speakeasy

Your marketing questions plus a room full of beer and marketing obsessed colleagues equals the best way to spend some time on a Friday!

Listen in as content manager, Dave Charest (that’s me!) moderates a marketing roundtable discussion with social media education developer, Azure Collier, social media specialist, Danielle Cormier, social media manager, Erica Ayotte, senior manager of conversion, Josh Mendelsohn, and social media specialist, Kristen Curtiss.

Ask your social media and marketing questions in the comments below and we’ll answer them in an upcoming episode! Or you can email your questions to: SocialTeam (at) ConstantContact (dot) com

The post Google I/O 2013: Our Thoughts [Speakeasy #41 - Hangout Edition] appeared first on Constant Contact Blogs.

[VIDEO] Learn How to Grow Your Business with Email and Social Media

Azure Collier — Mon, 20 May 2013 13:51:49 +0000

Small businesses have a lot of choices when it comes to digital marketing tools they can use to engage customers and grow referrals.

But what channels do you choose?

Many small businesses and organizations find themselves seeking the right strategies, tools and tactics to make their marketing efforts as effective as possible. But between Facebook and Twitter, email and mobile, deals, and whatever new social network is rolling out that month, there’s a lot to keep up with. And there are only so many hours in each day. The number of possibilities can feel overwhelming.

Our recorded webcast – Grow Your Business with Email and Social Media – will help make sense of the noise and show you how to make the most of the combination of email and social media for your organization.

In just 31 minutes, you’ll have a greater understanding of marketing basics like goals and objectives. You’ll learn what a “campaign” is and what to write about and offer in that campaign. You’ll be given some simple but powerful tips for how to get your messages opened and read, shared and socially visible. And you’ll see that there are some great tools you can use to help engage with your existing customers as well as expand your reach to new prospects.

You can watch the full webcast here for free!

Want to learn even more? Check out our live and recorded webinars – you’ll find tips and best practices on email marketing, social media marketing, event marketing, daily deals in our Learning Center.

The post [VIDEO] Learn How to Grow Your Business with Email and Social Media appeared first on Constant Contact Blogs.

Death of a Salesman: The Art of Selling Without Selling

Kristen Curtiss — Sun, 19 May 2013 13:00:47 +0000

As a small business owner, you’ve probably thought to yourself, “I’m not a salesman (or woman), how am I supposed to market myself or product?” The beauty of marketing is that you can sell without actually selling.

But how can this be?

I’m going to focus on social media marketing for the sheer fact that I’ve had many small business owners say to me, “I post my products on Facebook, but no one seems to care.” People don’t care because you haven’t given them a reason to care.

Let’s use a real life example. Let’s say it’s the first time I met you and all I did was talk about myself and what I wanted you to do for me. Would you continue to talk to me? I’m not a gambler, but I think it’s safe to bet that the answer would be no.

Give your audience a reason to like you

In social media marketing, or really any form of marketing, you rarely want to talk about yourself. This might seem counter intuitive but if you talk about things your audience cares about, educate them about the topics you are an expert in, and let them speak their minds, they will be much more willing to listen to you when you do talk about yourself.

Remember, you are an expert in whatever you do and your audience knows that. This gives you the opportunity to show off your expertise and build relationships with your customers. For example, if you are a hair salon owner, offer a daily tip about how to do your hair. This can be anything from “Tip: If you’re going to curl your hair, make sure you do not wash it for 12 hours before curling,” to a video tutorial about how to style your hair for a black tie event.

When you show off your expertise, your customers will appreciate you for educating them about the things they’re interested in. Also, the next time they are looking for a hair salon, they’ll think of you first because you gave them such great tips on how to do their hair at home.

Let your audience talk about themselves

People love to talk about themselves. This is no surprise to any of us, so tap into that urge. Ask your audience questions related to your brand or create a poll and let them participate. The best thing about doing this is that you’re not only increasing engagement but you’re learning who your audience is, what they’re interested in, and what they’re looking to learn from you.

Let’s go back to the hair salon example. Why not ask your audience, “What hair style have you tried at home but can’t seem to get right?” This question allows your audience to interact and participate with you, and (this is a big AND) it helps you understand what your customers are struggling with. You can then take this knowledge and create a workshop or tutorial to help them with that tricky hairstyle or simply make sure you’re offering that specific service.

Make your audience laugh

So many people are afraid to post things that are not directly related to their brand. This is a fear you need to overcome.

Again, we return to the hair salon. You can post a picture of a dog having a bad hair day and have a caption that says, “Looks like Fido should have come into the salon today.” You can also go a little further off topic but make sure to bring it back to your audience. The Constant Contact Facebook Page has a ton of great examples of this…but here’s one of my favorites:

Use the 80/20 rule

This does not mean that you can’t promote yourself. By building relationships with your customers and ensuring 80% of your content is for them, you can then throw in 20% about yourself without the fear of scaring them away.

Now that you’ve engaged your customers with the valuable information they’re looking for, allowed them to talk about themselves, and entertained them, they’ll be willing to listen to your promotions without feeling like they’re just another person you’re selling to.

Your promotions don’t have to feel “salesy” either. There are ways to talk about your new product without saying, “We have a new brush…come buy it now!” Never say “buy it now.” This is a pitch your customers will run from. Instead, why not post a picture of that new brush with the brand name below and a caption that reads, “It’s waiting for you!”

No salesman allowed

Not a salesman? That’s perfect! People don’t want to be sold to. There are numerous ways to spin your content so you are selling them without making them feel like you’re selling them. This is the key way to build engagement and relationships.

Just remember, if you read your content and realize you’ve been talking about yourself more than 20% of the time, it’s time to change your strategy. Take a step back and interact with your customers. You can sell without selling!

What steps have you taken to sell without selling? Have you seen an increase in your customer engagement? Let us know in the comments below.

The post Death of a Salesman: The Art of Selling Without Selling appeared first on Constant Contact Blogs.

How Do I Turn Facebook Fans into Paying Customers?

Ryan Pinkham — Sat, 18 May 2013 13:00:55 +0000

This is a question small business owners have been asking themselves for as long as Facebook has existed as a marketing platform.

It’s also a question that Nadia Roch wanted to answer when she helped Island Natural Market launch their Facebook Page in the beginning of 2012.

“A few years ago we upgraded our website and decided we needed to upgrade our online marketing as well,” Nadia explains. “We started off with email marketing and had some great results, so we wanted to see if we could do the same thing with our Facebook Page.”

Getting off to a slow start

Island Natural Market has been open for business since 1992. Over the last two decades, they have grown to become the largest health food store and supplier of organic food and products in Nanaimo, British Columbia.

“We’re lucky to have a passionate following of people who love our products and the service we provide,” explains Nadia. “But getting people to become fans took some time at the start.”

That’s when Nadia decided to try Social Campaigns from Constant Contact.

After seeing the Market’s monthly newsletter become one of the biggest drivers of new business over the last year, Nadia was excited to see what this new tool had to offer.

Quadrupling their fan base in less than six months

With Social Campaigns, Nadia had the ability to run a contest right on the Island Natural Market Facebook Page. In order to enter, participants would need to first become a Fan on Facebook and then enter their email address on a custom landing page.

To promote the contest, Island Natural Market used a mix of “new” and “old” marketing methods. They sent an email to their list of more than 4,000 recipients to let current customers know about the contest and ran a print advertisement with hopes of reaching new customers in their community.

Over the next few weeks, more than 250 people entered to win a prize pack of Island Natural Market products. In total, the contest generated 179 new Fans for the Island Natural Market Facebook Page.

“It was great because it helped attract new fans but also let people enter who already Liked our page,” Nadia explains. “We got a ton of great feedback from everyone who entered.”

Over the next six months, Nadia would run two more contests with the Classic Sweepstakes campaign from Social Campaigns.

“When we ran our first campaign back in November, we had around 200 fans,” Nadia recalls. “By April, we were up to over 850 fans. That’s a direct result from the Social Campaigns tool.”

Turning new Fans into new customers

With a new online audience and the ability to stay in contact with customers and prospects on a daily basis, Nadia began to think differently about the role Facebook could have in the health store’s online marketing efforts.

The contests were just what she needed to grow the Market’s presence on Facebook and now she wanted to turn new Fans into new paying customers.

In April, Nadia decided to offer an exclusive coupon using the new Coupon Campaign from Social Campaigns.

“We did a one day offer to help celebrate Earth Day at the store,” Nadia explains. “It was a chance to give our fans something they would like and it brought people in to redeem it.”

With the new Coupon campaign, Nadia was able to create the campaign and launch it in four easy steps. She could then promote the campaign on Facebook and send an email to her list of contacts. For anyone who wanted to redeem the offer, they would have to bring a printable coupon in store on Earth Day.

“The coupon was even easier to use and it took less time to put our campaign together,” Nadia explains. “Something that took us less than an hour to plan and put together brought us nearly 80 new fans.”

In a single day, over 30 Island Natural Market Facebook fans came in to redeem their offer.

“The ease of converting fans into customers has really been the biggest advantage,” Nadia explains. “That and having people come into the store and tell us how much they loved the campaign.”

How to turn Facebook Fans into paying customers

Island Natural Market is a perfect example of how small businesses can turn fans into paying customers.

Generating business results wasn’t something that happened over night. For Island Natural Market, it began outside of Facebook, with building an active list of email contacts. From there, they were able to build their social presence by leveraging their email list to promote fun and engaging contests.

Combine that with an exclusive offer that takes fans off of Facebook and into your store and what you have is a social media strategy that turns Facebook Fans into paying customers.

Find out how the new Social Campaigns Coupon campaign can help turn fans into customers.

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